When is the Right Time to Hire an
Association Management Company?

Making the decision to hire an association management company is a tough one for many volunteer associations. And it should be — it represents a significant step in the life of an organization.

As an association grows, it increasingly needs more human resources to successfully manage member recruitment, retention and communication activities; to work more closely with vendors, government agencies or other key partners; to plan and carry out the detailed logistics of cornerstone events like annual meetings, tradeshows and conferences. Left solely to volunteers with limited time or inadequate expertise, critical tasks may be delayed, ignored or poorly executed. That, in turn, can undermine the association’s mission and objectives.

One solution is to hire full- or part-time personnel to focus on certain areas. But depending on the organization’s financial resources and level of need, that may be impractical or insufficient. Someone brought on to help manage the association’s finances, for instance, may not have the experience or skills to also plan the annual conference or manage a member recruitment program. Staffing all of those areas of need is likely fiscally unfeasible for many associations.

Hiring an independent association management firm can be a cost-effective, results-producing option. The economies of scale gained through the use of an independent firm can more than justify the investment, while boards are freed to concentrate on furthering the association’s mission instead of managing employees.

When is the time right to hire an association management firm? Answering these questions may help you answer that question:

• Has your organization’s membership base or activity level exceeded the capacity of your current volunteers to direct in detail?
• Is volunteer burnout a growing problem?
• Have recent events or programs not met your expectations?
• Do you struggle to keep your membership consistently involved and informed?
• Are new officers and board members overwhelmed or intimidated as they learn the duties of their positions?
• Are you fully exploring sponsorship, donation or income opportunities?
• Are key association goals unmet?
• Are important organizational records up to date and readily accessible?
• Does the association depend on a few “indispensable” volunteers for many of its mission-critical tasks?
• Do you regularly discuss what the association could accomplish “if only we had the staff?”

If you are interested in exploring what an association management company can do for your organization, please contact us. We’ll be happy to help you determine if the time is right to bring in an independent firm.